Wed, 14 Mar 2018 20:17:16 +0800WeeblySat, 10 Mar 2018 17:11:02 GMThttp://www.focusbulacan.com/contest/march-2018-photomeet-pamarawan-film-style-photowalkA film-style photowalk : participants had their cameras' LCD covered with tape. They had to expose and compose their shots thru the viewfinder - with no aid of LiveView and instant shot review. Only 36 shots were allowed each participant - Focus officers listed the file number of their most recent camera shot. After the photowalk, the participants were then allowed to take off the LCD covers to review their shots and pick the best one to submit for the contest. Deleting photos were not allowed and could be traced (why the officers noted the file numbers before the photowalk). A Focus officer received the entries on the spot by copying the photos from storage cards to a laptop.

This setup was meant to challenge the participants by mimicking the limitations/handicap of shooting with film. It requires knowing how to expose, being disciplined and making each shot matter. A throwback to the previous era but using what we have now.

The photowalk contest theme is "Humans of Pamarawan".

Voting Mechanics :

Contest is open to Focus Bulacan official members and applicants. Voting is also open only to members and applicants, plus official guest judge. Only Focus members/applicants/judge's votes will be tallied.

There's no specific criteria where to base your vote. Just vote for the photo that you think best represents the given theme for the activity (Humans of Pamarawan).

Please view each and every photo before casting your vote.

Pick one photo for 1st place, one for 2nd place, and one for 3rd place. Cast your vote by stating the entry numbers of your 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place photos. 1st place votes get 3 points, 2nd place votes get 2 points, and 3rd place votes get 1 point. (Guest judge's votes count for 10 points for 1st place, 7 points for 2nd, and 5 points for 3rd.)

You need to pick three photos. If you name only one photo, your vote would only count for 1 point.

Although not required, voters are encouraged to offer constructive critique on their picks.

Participants may not vote for their own photo. Self-votes will be nullified and violator's entry will be automatically disqualified.

The entry that accumulates the most number of points wins.

Use your Facebook account to cast your vote. There's a Facebook comment box plug-in at the bottom of this post. State your vote by adding a comment there.

To the participants : win the contest thru the merit of your photo, not by other means. Please report cases of vote solicitation or vote influencing by informing Competition Officer Jer Sandel. Your report will be handled confidentially. Participants who are found to have solicited or influenced votes shall be disqualified outright and given a last warning. The next offense shall lead to disqualification from Focus Bulacan's 2018 Competition.

Voting ends on Tuesday, March 20, at 11:59PM. Winner will be announced soon after.

Here are the entries of our "Humans of Pamarawan" film-style photowalk contest :

ENTRY 1

ENTRY 2

ENTRY 3

ENTRY 4

ENTRY 5

ENTRY 6

ENTRY 7

ENTRY 8

ENTRY 9

ENTRY 10

ENTRY 11

ENTRY 12

ENTRY 13

ENTRY 14

ENTRY 15

ENTRY 16

ENTRY 17

ENTRY 18

ENTRY 19

ENTRY 20

ENTRY 21

21 entries in all. You may now vote in the Facebook comment box below.

]]>Mon, 26 Feb 2018 15:56:11 GMThttp://www.focusbulacan.com/contest/february-2018-theme-contest-true-loveDifferent and personal interpretations of TRUE LOVE. So which one resonated the most with voters? We shall now find out. Thanks to everyone who cast their vote, especially our 2018 Theme Contest Judge RICKY LADIA. Cheers!

TRUE LOVE TOP 3 :

3rd Place : 24 points (8 votes) / Entry 6 / JOEY RAMOS

ENTRY 6

2nd Place : 35 points (14 votes) / Entry 3 / AMEN ALCORIZA

ENTRY 3

1st Place : 41 points (19 votes) / Entry 12 / RY JACINTO

ENTRY 12

Way to go, back-to-back! Congratulations, RY JACINTO! Safe to say that you're off to a great start. 1st Place gets an extra 10 points, 2nd Place gets 7, 3rd Place gets 5, 4th Place (undisclosed) gets 3, and 5th Place (also undisclosed) gets 2 points for the 2018 Photographer Of The Year competition. Participants automatically get 3 points for submitting entries.

Four Focus applicants made the Top 5, spearheaded by our winner, RY JACINTO. Congratulations! We don't usually announce the 4th and 5th placers but since this is unprecedented in terms of applicants' finish : 3rd placer Maynard Pasakdal, 4th placer Rachele Lacson, and 5th placer Hans Aliwalas are also applicants. Way to go, hopefuls! 1st Place gets an extra 10 points, 2nd Place gets 7, 3rd Place gets 5, 4th Place gets 3, and 5th Place gets 2 points for the 2018 Photographer Of The Year competition (points will only be recorded for official members). Participants automatically get 3 points for submitting entries.

Thanks to everyone who voted, including our guest judge Ruben Ranin who cast his vote all the way from Surigao. Till our next photomeet!

It's another year full of contests and competition - all aimed at improving the skills of Focus photographers while keeping them motivated to shoot. Here's everything you need to know about this year's competition :

2018 FOCUS BULACAN COMPETITION OFFICERS

2016-17 Competition Officer Amen Alcoriza is taking on a new role, this time as Logistics Officer for 2018. He is now eligible to enter and join the Focus competition, with no restrictions.

2013-2015 Competition Officer Jer Sandel is now back to handle the club's competition, as Competition Officer for 2018. Like last year (2017), he is not eligible to enter Focus Bulacan's competition. He may, however, join the PhotoWorld Cup competition in representing Focus Bulacan, the Scott Kelby Worldwide Photowalk contest, and other national/international contests that are not organized by Focus Bulacan.

2017 PhotoWorld Cup Adviser Joey Ramos reprises his role for 2018 and will be a non-participant in Focus Bulacan's PhotoWorld Cup screening contests. He may, however, join Focus Bulacan's PhotoMeet and Theme contests.

2018 CONTESTS

Monthly PhotoMeet contests shall continue. Photo entries for these contests will be shot during designated monthly PhotoMeets of Focus Bulacan.

There shall be 10 PhotoMeet contests for 2018 : one for every month except May, July, and December, plus a special PhotoMeet to be announced during the course of the competition.

Our regular theme contest is back! Back in 2013-2016, themes were assigned randomly and announced at the beginning of each month. Photo entries for a specific month's theme contest should be taken during that same month, with old/stock photos not allowed in the contest. However, in 2017, with Focus Bulacan joining the PhotoWorld Cup, the monthly contest themes were synchronized with the PhotoWorld Cup-given themes.

This year, our previous theme contest format is back. Themes will be announced at the beginning of each month. Photo entries must be shot/taken during the same month. Old/stock photos will not be allowed.

Theme contests are meant to provide an extra challenge to Focus competition participants on how to interpret themes and execute ideas into photo output.

Theme contests also give an opportunity to Focus members who cannot join PhotoMeets to participate in the competition by shooting on their own.

Focus Bulacan will again compete in the PhotoWorld Cup - a competition among FPPF-affiliated photography clubs

The PWC Committee has announced the rules and guidelines for 2018 along with the themes for each month, plus the dates of judging (details provided below)

PhotoWorld Cup 2018 Rules

All images must be taken from 2017 to 2018 only.

Infrared and sepia photos are not allowed.

Cellphone photos are strictly not allowed.

Previously published (in print or in social media) photos are not allowed.

Photos that previously won local and international awards prior to monthly theme judging will be disqualified.

"Kapatid" shots are not allowed to be used by the same photographer who previously used the image; except by other photographers who shot the same photo if it was done at the same time.

Photo inspiration is allowed for as long as it was not totally copied.

RAW/SOOC (straight out of the camera) JPEG copy of entries shall be provided by the participants along with the final output file of the entries

PhotoWorld Cup 2018 Themes

FEBRUARY - “Glass and Crystal”

photo must be macro/extreme closeup shot

photo should only show glass or crystal surface, no backgrounds

open : colored or black-and-white / shot in local or international location

MARCH - "The Coconut Song" (aka "Da Coconut Nut") by Smokey Mountain

song interpretation

photo should show anything about the song

Philippine location only

song lyrics will be provided to judges during the PWC Judging

colored or black-and-white

APRIL - “House of Worship”

interior only

the image should include the following elements : floor, wall, ceiling

with or without people

open : colored or black-and-white / shot in local or international location

MAY - “Portrait of Ethnic/Indigenous People”

Philippine location only

colored or black-and-white

JUNE - "Perya" (Amusement Park)

8×10 prints in portrait orientation

image size should be 7”x 7” square format (Instagram square crop ratio) and should be placed at the center of the print. Please see sample as your guide;

colored or black-and-white

Philippine location only

JUNE - "#PWD’s Kumakayod”

in connection with the annual International PWD (Persons With Disabilities) Day.

special club effort competition with prize

no club competition points

Philippine location only

minimum of 5 and maximum of 7 entries photo essay

subject should be same on all frames

JULY - "Bawal"

with or without signage but photo should depict the theme

colored or black-and-white

Philippine location only

AUGUST - “Urban Landscape”

sunrise or sunset only

open : colored or black-and-white / shot in local or international location

SEPTEMBER - “3 Rs”

Anything that depicts "reduce, reuse, recycle". Can be one, two or all of the 3 Rs.

Philippine location only

OCTOBER - “Only in the Philippines" Transportation

panoramic size of 8” x 24”; 1x3 ratio

open to cropping or stitching

colored or black-and-white

Philippine location only

NOVEMBER - “Women at Work”

club entry competition

photo essay of 5 maximum photos

should be the same subject

open : colored or black-and-white / shot in local or international location

CONTEST GUIDELINES & SUBMISSION MECHANICS

Purpose. Focus Bulacan’s photocontests are meant to inspire improvement by providing an organized form of objective and subjective evaluation of photos. Photograph entries are individually assessed, then compared to other entries, with these assessments being the basis for voting. The results and feedback of the contests should serve as critique, which in turn would guide the participants as to where improvements should be made in their next photos.

Approach. Contests are competitive in nature. Competitiveness - within the boundary of rules, fairness and sportsmanship – spurs improvement. Participants are urged to do their best to win contests while adhering to these guidelines. However, may we remind everyone that there will be winners, there will be losers, yet the ultimate goal is for participants to learn something from the feedback and critique on their photo entries. Winning isn’t everything. Wanting to win AND learning from trying are everything.

Methodology. Focus Bulacan contests are open only to official members and applicants. Likewise, only members and applicants are allowed to vote on the photos. Entries will be kept anonymous so as to eliminate bias and make voters assess the photos purely on their merit.

PHOTOMEET AND THEME CONTEST GENERAL MECHANICS :

Make sure your photos comply with the category or theme of the contest.

Only one (1) entry is allowed per participant.

Do not put borders or watermarks or any other mark of distinction on the photos.

Post-processing is allowed, unless stated otherwise. Creativity doesn’t end at the click of the shutter. However, putting text or borders on the photos are not allowed, unless specifically instructed by the Competition Officer to be allowed for a particular contest.

Please resize your entry to 1,000 pixels on the long side.

For photomeet contests, entries must be taken on the date of the photomeet.

For theme contests, entries must be taken on the same month of the theme.

Old/stock photos are not allowed.

Entries will be subjected to a vote by official Focus Bulacan members and applicants.

Contest organizer reserves the right to ask for RAW copy of the entry, for authentication purposes.

Make sure your photos comply with the category or theme of the contest.

All images must be taken from 2017 to 2018 only.

Infrared and sepia photos are not allowed.

Cellphone photos are strictly not allowed.

Photo entries must not be published in print or online, or entered in other contests, or posted in social media sites (Facebook, Instagram, 500px, Flickr, website, etc.)

Photos that previously won local and international awards prior to monthly theme judging will be disqualified.

"Kapatid" shots are not allowed to be used by the same photographer who previously used the image; except by other photographers who shot the same photo if it was done at the same time.

Photo inspiration is allowed for as long as it was not totally copied.

RAW/SOOC (straight out of the camera) JPEG copy of entries shall be provided by the participants along with the final output file of the entries

Only one (1) entry is allowed per participant.

Do not put borders or watermarks or any other mark of distinction on the photos.

Please send high-resolution copy of your photo entry (as opposed to photomeet and theme contest requirement of resizing it for web). We need high-res files of entries, as they will get printed for the FPPF PWC competition .

Post-processing is allowed, unless stated otherwise.

Entries will be screened by Competition Officer Jer Sandel and PhotoWorld Cup Adviser Joey Ramos. Approved entries will be printed and submitted to the national PhotoWorld Cup judging.

Keep in mind that you have to submit BOTH your photo entry and its raw file. Incomplete submissions will be disqualified from the contest.

Email your contest entries to focuscompetition@yahoo.com

Indicate in Subject the name of the PhotoWorld Cup theme

(Example : "HOUSE OF WORSHIP ENTRY"

ONLINE CONTEST VOTING MECHANICS

Only Focus members and applicants are allowed to join our contests.

For photomeet and theme contests : only members, applicants, and guest judges may vote (public voting).

For PWC contests, Competition Officer and PWC Adviser will select the entries for submission to the national PWC judging.

For 2018 photomeet and theme contests, we will use public comment voting system where votes will be posted as comments on the website contest page. You have to use your personal Facebook account in order to vote. The comment section is at the bottom of the contest page, click HERE to get the idea. We strongly encourage voters to offer critique along with their votes. Voting mechanics are also published whenever a contest is posted for voting.

Voting Mechanics

Contest is open to Focus Bulacan official members and applicants. Voting is also open only to members and applicants, plus official guest judges.

There's no specific criteria where to base your vote. Just vote for the photo that you think best represents the activity or theme.

Please view each and every photo before casting your vote.

Pick one photo for 1st place, one for 2nd place, and one for 3rd place. Cast your vote by stating the entry numbers of your 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place photos. 1st place votes get 3 points, 2nd place votes get 2 points, and 3rd place votes get 1 point. (Guest judge's votes count for 10 points for 1st place, 7 points for 2nd, and 5 points for 3rd.)

You need to pick three photos. If you name only one photo, your vote would only count for 1 point.

Although not required, voters are encouraged to offer constructive critique on their picks.

Participants may not vote for their own photo. Self-votes will be nullified and offender's entry (if he/she has one in the contest) will be automatically disqualified.

The entry that accumulates the most number of points wins.

Use your Facebook account to cast your vote. State your vote in the Facebook comment section at the bottom of the contest page.

To the participants : win the contest thru the merit of your photo, not by other means.

Voting usually takes a week (7 days), with the winner announced the next day once voting ends.

Vote Solicitation/Influencing

Soliciting or influencing votes is strictly prohibited.

Do not ask voters to vote for your entry or influence them to do so by showing them your entry.

Keep your entry anonymous as much as possible.

Proven cases of vote solicitation/influencing will lead to disqualification of involved participant.

2018 CONTEST JUDGES

Unlike the previous year when we had a panel of 3 judges for each type of contest, for 2018 we shall have one guest judge for photomeet contests and one guest judge for theme contests. Each judge's votes will count for 10 points for their 1st place picks, 7 points for 2nd place picks, and 5 points for 3rd place picks. Each guest judge will be asked to vote in every photomeet or theme contest.

Official representation of Focus Bulacan in covering/joining a sponsored event (to be announced beforehand/photo output may be required) : 5 points

PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR 2018 COMPETITION

Photographer Of The Year 2018 Competition Mechanics

The competition runs from January until December and encapsulates all Focus contests during the period.

POTY is points-based, with members accumulating points based on their activity and performance in contests/activities.

All points will be tracked and recorded. The Focus member who has the most points at the end of 2018 will be recognized as Photographer Of The Year.

The points and records will not be made available to the public but members will be updated individually - upon request - every quarter as to how many points they have accumulated and what is their current ranking. They will not be given access to other members' stats or standings.

Only official Focus Bulacan members will be allowed to participate in POTY. Focus applicants MAY join our contests, but they will not accumulate points to be included in the POTY competition. However, once they become official members, their points in previous contests (during the year) will then be carried over to the POTY scoring.

Focus Bulacan officers are allowed to join the contest, EXCEPT the Competition Committee Officer, as standard procedure for our photocontests.

Final details of prize options will be announced in the last quarter of a calendar year.

]]>Sun, 28 Jan 2018 10:57:03 GMThttp://www.focusbulacan.com/contest/january-2018-photomeet-contest-fiesta-republica-dulansanganWe apologize for giving the voters a heck of a task : selecting just three photos out of a lot of 26 deserving entries. Truly, it all comes down to personal preferences. Thank you to everyone who voted and shared their opinion! Our guest judge Ruben Ranin's watch has just started. (Thank you, sir!)

The dust has cleared. Here are Sagisag at Sigasig's Top 3 photos :

3rd Place : 27 points (10 votes) / Entry 19 / JR LOPEZ

ENTRY 19

2nd Place : 28 points (12 votes) / Entry 15 / JOEL DOMINGO

ENTRY 15

1st Place : 43 points (18 votes) / Entry 9 / ALIH VIAJE

ENTRY 9

Do we smell a back-to-back? 2017 Photographer Of The Year ALIH VIAJE is off to a raring start. Congratulations! 1st Place gets an extra 10 points, 2nd Place gets 7, 3rd Place gets 5, 4th Place (undisclosed) gets 3, and 5th Place (also undisclosed) gets 2 points for the 2018 Photographer Of The Year competition. Participants automatically get 3 points for submitting entries.

]]>Fri, 29 Dec 2017 16:00:00 GMThttp://www.focusbulacan.com/contest/december-2017-focus-portrait-project-2017Our version of the Christmas exchange gift tradition : picking a random partner and shooting each other's portraits. FPP 2017 is now the 5th edition, with this year's theme "black and white".

FPP participants get 7 points for submitting entries for the Photographer of the Year competition. First place gets additional 15 points as bonus, 2nd place gets 10 points, 3rd place gets 7, 4th place gets 5, and 5th place gets 3 bonus points.

]]>Fri, 08 Dec 2017 00:28:19 GMThttp://www.focusbulacan.com/contest/november-2017-theme-contest-saan-sa-pinasThe last theme of the FPPF PhotoWorld Cup competition for 2017 aims to expose lesser known scenic spots in the Philippines. Here are the entries and the top placers from our contest :

5th Place : 14 points (6 votes) / Entry 3 / GERSON DOMINGO

4th Place : 16 points (8 votes) / Entry 5 / ALIH VIAJE

3rd Place : 21 points (7 votes) / Entry 7 / ELENA TAEZA

2nd Place : 35 points (13 votes) / Entry 2 / JING CALONGE

1st Place : 45 points (17 votes) / Entry 9 / PONG VIAJE

Jump for joy, Pong! Congratulations! 1st Place gets an extra 10 points, 2nd Place gets 7, 3rd Place gets 5, 4th Place gets 3, and 5th Place gets 2 points for the 2017 Photographer Of The Year competition. Participants automatically get 3 points for submitting entries.

With the final theme contest over with, Focus Bulacan's 2017 competition is down to its last contest : the Focus Portrait Project. Good luck, folks!

]]>Wed, 22 Nov 2017 00:26:18 GMThttp://www.focusbulacan.com/contest/november-2017-photomeet-contest-light-painting-challenge-2It was a challenge, indeed, but a very fun one at that. The teams really needed to work together to plan and execute their light painting ideas.

Teamwork pays off! Congratulations to the group of Awel, Jer, Jeffrey, and Alih! 1st Place gets an extra 10 points, 2nd Place gets 7, 3rd Place gets 5, 4th Place (undisclosed) gets 3, and 5th Place (also undisclosed) gets 2 points (EACH TEAM MEMBER) for the 2017 Photographer Of The Year competition. Participants automatically get 3 points for submitting entries.

]]>Wed, 01 Nov 2017 16:00:00 GMThttp://www.focusbulacan.com/contest/october-2017-theme-contest-sportsAction and competition. These are the common elements of our PhotoWorld Cup-assigned theme contest for October 2017. Here are the entries and the top photos :

5th Place : 14 points (8 votes) / Entry 2 / PONG VIAJE

4th Place : 16 points (7 votes) / Entry 9 / GERSON DOMINGO

3rd Place : 26 points (10 votes) / Entry 6 / AWEL DIONISIO

2nd Place : 38 points (15 votes) / Entry 7 / JEFFREY TINAGAN

1st Place : 44 points (12 votes) / Entry 1 / ELENA TAEZA

A smashing success deserves bloody congratulations, Elena! 1st Place gets an extra 10 points, 2nd Place gets 7, 3rd Place gets 5, 4th Place gets 3, and 5th Place gets 2 points for the 2017 Photographer Of The Year competition. Participants automatically get 3 points for submitting entries.

The Top 5 placers are automatically included in Focus entries to the PhotoWorld Cup national competition. Joining them are wildcard picks from Focus competition committee members Amen Alcoriza, Jay Salvador, and Joey Ramos, plus entries from Chi Lopez and Jer Sandel :

Out of the 21 photos up for consideration, the voters ultimately decided our Top 3 :

3rd Place : 32 points (13 votes) / Entry 16 / SHERWIN TOMAS

ENTRY 16

2nd Place : 41 points (20 votes) / Entry 13 / JOHN PAUL RAMIREZ

ENTRY 13

1st Place : 61 points (24 votes) / Entry 11 / GERSON DOMINGO

ENTRY 11

Congratulations, Gerson! Your photo will be the official entry of Balagtas Photowalk 1 to the worldwide contest. We wish you the best of luck! 1st Place gets an extra 10 points, 2nd Place gets 7, 3rd Place gets 5, 4th Place (undisclosed) gets 3, and 5th Place (also undisclosed) gets 2 points for the 2017 Photographer Of The Year competition. Participants automatically get 3 points for submitting entries.

Thanks to everyone who voted! To our guest judges who always make it a point to offer useful critique, we appreciate your efforts. Thank you!